An eclectic mosh posh of creative collaboration

LA-based garage rock band Deap Vally is back with a vengeance with their newest EP, Digital Dream. Similar to their last album, Deap Lips, the Flaming lips/Deap Vally hybrid released just last year, Digital Dream is a collaborative effort but instead of with just one artist, it’s with multiple.  The album is an eccentric mosh posh of musical creativity that may sound different than what Deap Vally usually does. At its core, however, Digital Dream is the very essence of what makes up the powerful female duo: pure rock and roll.  

If you’re used to Deap Vally’s past songs like “Baby I Call Hell,” it’s clear that the EP’s opener is worlds apart. Their newest single, “Look Away,” is a smokey, soft rock song with chilled out vocals. The song features the vocals of Warpaint’s jennylee, adding bright and distant harmonizations. It’ll give the listener a taste of LA with its lyrics, “picture myself on a hill, picture myself in LA, picture myself all lost in a moment of dreams.” It’s a warm and sunny tune, perfect if you’re looking to escape the mundanity of our current COVID lifestyle.  

The title song, “Digital Dream,” is a darker, slower and more electronic song than the previous track. The song talks about an apocalypse and the future, which seems fitting for these times people are living in. The song features French artist Soko, who adds a wonderfully morbid tone to the song. The scene is set with the opening lines, “in a post apocalyptic world in 2068, I sit and watch the scenery.” Soko’s voice has an incredible monotone aspect to it, adding to the numbing nature of the song up until its ending, where the rock really comes in. It jolts the song to life with its amazing electronic beats and intense drumming.  

“High Horse” is a complete 180 from the past two songs. It’s kick-ass, rough and almost too catchy for its own good. It starts out unapologetically loud with a rock beat, featuring the sultry vocals of KT Tunstall and Peaches. The lyrics are abrasive and stubborn in all the right ways, which becomes clear from the get-go: “I could be fucking anything I want.” This is the best song on the EP to rock out to.

Next is “Shock Easy,” the creeping, smooth, reverb-filled final song. The song crawls to the finish line, with its haunting lyrics and psychedelic sounding rock beat. This track features the incredible guitar work of Jamie Hince, and with the guitar and dreamy vocals, it’s hard to notice the chilling lyrics that go along with it. “Shock Easy” is a scary trip disguised as a rock lover’s version of heaven. 

Digital Dream serves up rock and roll in different styles. It’s soft and hazy, electric and loud. The refreshing versions of rock and various vocals prove that rock comes in all forms and that no matter the state of the world, there’s always room for more.